Archive for June, 2008

Remember Noelle McCarthy’s 95bFM interview with Brash in which she got him to admit to knowledge of the Brethren pamphlets? Student radio has done it again. Hager’s weekend article in the Sunday Star Times detailed an ongoing advisory relationship between the National Party and political consultants Crosby Textor. But RDU’s Kate Gorgeous asked John Key back in November 2007, “Have you got […]

Brand Key on Waatea news: “A National government will be a lot more demanding about educational standards, a lot more demanding about under-performance in schools, a lot more demanding on failing schools” There is no ‘how we will fix things’ here, simply a statement of problems. If schools don’t perform would National cut their funding? […]

There’s a standard formula that Crosby/Textor has its clients use when damaging information comes out. a) refuse to engage. The most senior public response to the revelation that Brand Key has been created by exactly the same people who ran Brash’s divisive, racist campaign in 2005 has come from Key’s chief of staff. No politician […]

So Crosby/Textor has been designing Brand Key from Day 1, isn’t this just what every party does? No, it isn’t – Crosby/Textor uses a particularly undemocratic, nasty form of political marketing (more on that in later posts) and the extent to which National uses Crosby/Textor is simply beyond the financial means of any other party. […]

Nicky Hager’s piece in today’s Sunday Star Times has confirmed what we all suspected: Crosby Textor are the creators of Brand Key. For those of you unfamiliar with CT, they’re known as the dirtiest and most driven political PR firm in the game. CT specialises in dog-whistle racism, attack politics and pretty much every aspect […]

It strikes me there is a disconnect between what prospective National voters expect it to do in government and what it has actually promised it would do. Some examples: Tax Cuts How much larger do you expect the tax cut National will offer you will be compared to the ones Labour has announced? $5 a week? $10? […]

On the odd occasion I have time to read outside of the confines of The Standard and its ever increasing brawl of entertaining comments. I noticed we don’t have a external reading list, and it is within the range of my writing skills, so here are my oddities for the slow weekends…. From quote of […]

As expected, the economy contracted 0.3% in the March quarter. The drought brought activity in the agricultural sector down after a recent strong run, the housing sector continued to slow off the back of the boom, oil prices are dragging on the economy in general, and mining was down after a surge in the December […]

There’s a technique that sits at the heart of conjuring tricks called misdirection the act of drawing attention away from the trick itself. You all know how it works: the conjurer will flourish a brightly coloured handkerchief in one hand, while the trick is quietly taking place unnoticed in the other. The same thing happens […]

ACT is turning to increasingly desperate attempts to win media attention. Raising Roger Douglas from the dead didn’t work (he only got 6 people to come to his latest speech). Now, Heather Roy has named a police informant in Parliament. This pathetic attempt to raise a petty scandal has put the life of the informant […]

A good cartoon by Mike Moreu this morning about Key’s confusing stance on the smacking referendum. Though of course, as a_y_b pointed out yesterday, this approach isn’t at all confusing if all you’re trying to do is to win an election by accentuating and exploiting negative perceptions of your opponent.

Three events this week epitomised the benefits of nine years of centre-left government: the continuing fall in benefit numbers, the Government’s moves to protect workers from being ripped off by labour-hire companies, and the ‘Treelord’ Treaty settlements. If the anti-Maori, anti-worker National party had won power in 2005, we would not have seen these achievements […]

For the first second third time, National is trying to shut down the reporting of things they feel don’t cast them in the glowing light they’d prefer. TV3 indicates that National is to make a formal complaint over the reporting of John Key’s ignorant and insulting comments in relation to the ‘peaceful’ settlement of New […]

In an attempt to cover for John Key’s ignorance of New Zealand history, National’s Gerry Brownlee has pulled out a quote from Michael Cullen that he asserts says the same thing as the Key quote. You compare: Key: “We’re not a country that’s come about as a result of civil war or where there’s been […]

From Brian Fallow in The Herald on migration and immigration: …Statistics New Zealand has been comparing last year with previous peak gross outflows, allowing for changes in population size and age-structure. In unadjusted terms, permanent and long-term departures for Australia last year were just 7 per cent lower than the 1979 peak, but 20 per […]

Mr Key on NewstalkZB: “We’re not a country that’s come about as a result of civil war or where there’s been a lot of fighting internally, we’re, we’re a country which peacefully came together”. So, the numerous pre-Treaty battles, the Flagstaff War, the Land Wars, Parihaka. decades or warfare in which many tribes lost their entire territory and […]

In line with Ministry of Justice advice, the Government has decided not to hold the child discipline referendum at the same time as the election. You can read the entire advice document here: Holding a referendum at the same time as the general election is not recommended because “From 1999, we know that voters would […]

Colin Espiner’s just posted an entry headed “National’s position on smacking confusing”. It is – but only if you’re expecting philosophical consistency. Key’s approach isn’t at all confusing if all you’re trying to do is to win an election by accentuating and exploiting negative perceptions of your opponent. For the time being, this is National’s […]

Michael Laws has called for ‘draconian, central measures’ to fight gangs; he wants the army called out. He wants military force let loose on our streets to engage in combat with an undefined enemy. Where are we? Iraq? That way lies dictatorship, military rule, the end of our freedom. If we don’t want kids going […]

An interesting article in the Washington Post poses the question: “You thought our presidential candidates were nice guys, regular guys, guys with whom you’d like to sit down and have a beer? Guess what, lots of people are now telling me: They aren’t. But why on Earth should anyone expect them to be? In its […]

Whenever John Key is asked to explain how he will fund some new spending or his still secret tax cuts, he says â€˜we’ll cut waste/rein in spending’ and the only example he ever gives is ‘we’ll cap the core public service at 36,000′. This, he claims, will save â€˜$500 million over 3 years’ or $166 […]

I’ve noticed a new trend in the right’s spin lately (apart from their wholesale theft of campaign scripts) – the â€˜have your cake and eat it’ trick. This tactic is basically a response to legislation or policy they don’t like but they know they can’t be seen to be against. So what they do is […]

Petrol is over $2.10 a litre. The price will keep rising both with the ever upward march of the price of crude and the falling NZ dollar. Already, motorists are responding. Road usage in Auckland has fallen 3%. It’s fair to believe it is falling elsewhere too. The only reasonable conclusion is that the number […]

You’re invited to the first Auckland Drinking Liberally event – 7.30pm next Wednesday night (2 July) at the London Bar with special guest speaker David Slack. Drinking Liberally brings together people from across the left-leaning wing of the political spectrum for discussion, debate and, well, drinking. The first Auckland event will take place from 7.30pm […]

Everyone in the know is aware that Colmar Brunton is the worst polling company in New Zealand and constantly over-rates National. We also know Fairfax isn’t much better. There’s no use in going on about it. It’s not a good look. The fact is Labour is well behind National in the polls. There’s no point […]

There is no longer any hope the union-led Movement for Democratic Change can remove Mugabe from power peacefully. Now, his thugs are killing MDC supporters, union leaders have been arrested, and the regime is moving to break the organised labour. This is typical behaviour of a regime moving into totalitarianism the unions represent the largest […]

Labour, with the support of New Zealand First, has developed a bill based on Darien Fenton’s private members’ bill that will ensure tens of thousands of workers are no longer ripped off by ‘triangular employment’ situations, whereby their effective employer contracts out the actual employment of staff to a labour hire company. It works like […]

George Lakoff has a new book out. You might remember him from such books as “Moral Politics” and “Don’t Think of an Elephant”. These books largely dealt with what he termed “reframing” of political metaphors – using belief structures to which voters already subscribe as supports for arguments for progressive policies. The NYT reviews his […]

JASPER BERNES in Communemag looks at the New Green Deal – a proposed stimulus package in the US – that aims to address climate change and economic inequality. We cannot legislate and spend our way out of catastrophic global warming ...

UK woman Maya Forstater lost her job for speaking up about women’s rights. She is going to court to protect other people who speak up too. I lost my job over tweeting and writing about sex and gender identity, and sharing ...

Police are investigating a series of racist messages posted on an unofficial University of Auckland social media page, as staff and students vow to continue fighting racism, hate, and discrimination. ...

The US has charged Wikileaks editor Julian Assange with espionageJulian Assange could face decades in a US prison after being charged with violating the Espionage Act by publishing classified information through WikiLeaks. Prosecutors announced 17 additional charges against Assange for ...

Tens of thousands of students are skipping school today to strike for the climate. If you don't understand what this is about, you haven't been reading the news. The planet is burning, and their future is at risk. So, they're ...

Note! Weekly new research posts will not continue anymore. This is the last post in this series. A selection of new climate related research articles is shown below. This post has separate sections for: Climate Change, Climate Change Impacts, Climate ...

Three Christians walk into a bar. A Catholic, a Presbyterian and a Life Church member... None of them vote for the same party. No, it's not much of a punch line, I confess. But then the idea of a Christian ...

Over two centuries ago, the first-ever professor of economics, Thomas Malthus, predicted that levels of personal income would stagnate. He argued that there was a limited supply of land and that, given diminishing returns, additional farmers would produce less additional ...

Back in 2003, Destiny Church theocrat Brian Tamaki founded a political party, Destiny New Zealand, to rail against modern society. In the 2005 election, it gained just 0.62% of the vote. But Tamaki is undeterred, so he's trying again:Destiny Church ...

Back in February, the International Court of Justice ruled that UK had violated international law in its ethnic cleansing of the Chagos Islands, and ordered that they be handed back to Mauritius. Today the UN General Assembly voted on a ...

Comments about Green MP Golriz Ghahraman by ACT MP David Seymour on a reactionary radio talk show, and the threats that followed and which the Police deemed serious enough to merit a security detail for her, got me to thinking ...

Today is a Member's Day. While it was originally expected to be the second reading of David Seymour's End of Life Choice Bill, National's bigots have successfully filibustered the past few Member's Days, so that now looks like it won't ...

Last week, ACT leader David Seymour called Green MP Golriz Ghahraman "a real menace to freedom in this country" over her views on hate speech. He said this in an environment where Ghahraman regularly receives death threats. And now, thanks ...

There's been another dump of documents from the Operation Burnham "inquiry", this time about rules of engagement. In the past, NZDF has refused to release these due to "national security", on the odd theory that if it were publicly known ...

Perhaps it’s because of the sheer size – and therefore enormous potential – of their country, but Australians have always demonstrated a harder-edged nationalism than have Kiwis. And that tendency has become even more apparent in recent years, when they ...

Current member of the National Party, List MP Alfred Ngaro, has declared he has an intent towards the possibility of setting up a Christian-oriented “values” party. Simon Bridges initially denied discussion, but we all know his denials are really never ...

Australians went to the polls over the weekend, and have apparently re-elected the shit party to government. It was unexpected, but I guess that's what happens when you have a media landscape utterly dominated by a highly partisan monopoly. Meanwhile, ...

Back in 2017, Taiwan's highest court ruled that violated “the people’s freedom of marriage” and “the people’s right to equality”, and gave the legislature to enact a marriage equality law. And over the weekend, just one week before the deadline ...

A chronological listing of news articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week, i.e., Sun, May 12 through Sat, May 18, 2019 Editor's Pick 12 excuses for climate inaction and how to refute themUsing moral ...

While abortion laws in New Zealand are likely to be liberalised, in the US abortion rights are being rolled back. This article from Feminist Current looks at the way the anti abortion movement is reframing its arguments. by Karen Jolly ...

by Sean Kearns It appears that even in Britain, where a lot of unions remain affiliated to Labour, the working class itself is less attached to Labour. The bureaucratic leaderships keep unions chained to Labour, the workers are just not ...

In October 2013 I wrote about “Valuing Xero in one hour“, and (although it had a bug) came up with a forecast that justified the then $2.2 billion valuation of Xero with a Weighted Average Cost of Capital of 18%. ...

Climate Change Minister James Shaw has announced the latest decisions in the government's programme to tweak the Emissions Trading Scheme to make it actually discourage pollution rather than subsidise it. There's a commitment to begin auctioning units from late next ...

Dunedin will play host to the New Zealand Minerals Forum at the end of the month, where the companies who dig up New Zealand and destroy our natural environment for private profit will conspire on how to pillage more effectively ...

Earlier in the year, National helped failed Green leadership candidate Vernon Tava set up a "teal" astroturf party, sustainablenz. It seems to have sunk without a trace, without even registering a logo with the Electoral Commission, let alone applying for ...

Those with a progressive agenda (and yes, I count myself as one) have been frustrated by our own inability and reluctance to engage head-on in the most important argument in political discourse – the role, function and objective of government.read ...

There is a story of a little old lady who woke up after a close election and was told that the result was a ‘hung parliament’. She responded that she did not know what that meant, but it sounded like ...

In a major decision, the UK Supreme Court has ruled that that country's spies are not above the law:Government security decisions will in future be open to challenge in the courts after judges ruled that a secretive intelligence tribunal could ...

‘Cheating by university students paying ‘ghostwriters’ to write essays for them is totally unacceptable and requires a nationally co-ordinated response’, says the New Zealand Tertiary Education Union. ...

ECan has just declared a climate emergency, becoming the first local authority in New Zealand to do so. But what does it mean? Their declaration included this:Environment Canterbury declares a climate emergency and commits to continue to: robustly and visibly ...

An investigation by the Privacy Commissioner has found that WINZ systematically misused its powers, conducting intrusive and illegal searches into beneficiaries' lives in violation of both the Social Security Act and Privacy Act. Searches like this:“In one instance, a beneficiary ...

I love the National's Library's Papers Past archive. I've used it many times for work and sometimes just for fun. The one thing I never thought I'd be able to do is vanity-search on it. And yet, here it is: ...

Bolton has never conceded that invading Iraq was a mistake, in fact he considers it to this day still as a roaring success. His history in public life is that of an unrepentant, ignorant thug of a politician, a persona ...

A big myth in this country is that we are all equal under the law. If someone commits a crime, they get prosecuted, regardless of who they are. We already know that that's a myth when it comes to race ...

Hate speech’ laws are being considered in New Zealand. We believe it is important to defend free speech. This is an important issue that the left should take up. If you’d like to be a part of the Left Network ...

One of the criticisms of the government's Zero Carbon Bill is that it is toothless: the independent Climate Change Commission can set budgets and advise on plans, but has no power to implement anything. Greenpeace for example wanted the Commission ...

(fire, California)Some time ago Jeanette Fitzsimons described our action on climate change like a car driving rapidly to a precipice while the occupants argue about whether they should maybe change down a gear. If we are to continue with this ...

“Business as usual” is always the catch-cry of those who are happy with the way things are. “Let’s not change anything” makes sense to those who are doing well and see no reason to run any risks in case that ...

KYOTO, Japan, May 13 – The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released on Monday an update to its methodology used by governments to estimate their greenhouse gas emissions and removals. Governments are required to report their national greenhouse gas ...

As Donald Trump surveys the current state of his relationships with China, Iran and North Korea, with all of whom he has recently engaged in a somewhat confrontational way, even someone as resistant to self-doubt as the US President might ...

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is being prosecuted for corruption. So how is he planning to avoid it? A law granting him immunity would not survive judicial scrutiny. So, he plans to remove that scrutiny entirely:The new far-reaching bill would ...

Last week I highlighted an odious secrecy clause in the government's Zero Carbon Bill, which unnecessarily exempted information from the Official Information Act, undermining transparency and accountability. The government's Equal Pay Amendment Bill is back from select committee today, and ...

Earlier today Redline reached a total of 600,000 views since we began in June 2011. This is a modest total, but not bad for a hardcore marxist blog at the arse-end of the world, and based in perhaps the most ...

Why is MBIE so supportive of the oil industry, why do they come up with outrageous estimates of the value of the oil industry to New Zealand, and why do they see environmentalists as a threat to be suppressed by ...

So, its on. On May 29, the day before Labour's "wellbeing budget", the centrepiece of its political year when it tries to send a good news message about what its doing, the teachers are going on strike. They've been overworked ...

My wife grew up in suburban London – not an environment that was conducive, one might think, to developing an interest in wild life. But her father was a bird lover and he helped her, too, to develop a love ...

“You just need a sense of humour”. I heard this patronising and unhelpful advice from a panellist at an Autism New Zealand Conference many years ago. What about access to education and services, understanding, financial and other support?These words came ...

by Jon Flanders Once again this year I traveled to Cuba on a delegation that visited many interesting sites on the island, once of them being the huge May Day march in Havana. Cuba celebrates May Day as a national ...

Film review by Don Franks All is not true but lots is good in the Shakespeare movie now showing in Wellington. In “All is true” , Ben Elton’s script combines, happily to this viewer, the little that’s known of historical Shakespeare ...

Improving the safety of all road users is the focus of a new public consultation document on the issue of drug driver testing. Plans for public consultation on options to improve the drug driver testing process have been announced by ...

Police Minister Stuart Nash says calling a cop suddenly got a whole lot easier with the launch of a ground-breaking new service for non-emergency calls. “The single non-emergency number ‘ten-five’ is designed to provide better service for the public and ...

Frontline Police numbers have been boosted with today’s deployment of 77 new officers to the regions.Police Minister Stuart Nash today congratulated the recruits of Wing 325 who graduated at a formal ceremony at the Royal New Zealand Police College. ...

Politicians should be reminded not to misuse Police to suppress criticism 25 MAY 2019 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE The Free Speech Coalition calls on the Police and Human Rights Commission to remind politicians that they can’t misuse false complaints ...

OIA requests reveal Housing New Zealand knew it was letting tenants wallow in dangerous, leaky conditions for at least seventeen years before its hand was forced and the flats demolished. The tenants were mostly disabled, solo mothers, or elderly, abandoned ...

Simon Shepherd: This week, a megastrike. The words no Education Minister wants to hear. For the first time in New Zealand history, all state and integrated schools will strike together this Wednesday. The action comes after talks failed to secure ...

New Zealand’s major media outlets—TVNZ, Stuff, Mediaworks, NZME and Radio NZ—signed an unprecedented agreement on May 1 to self-censor their coverage of the trial of Brenton Tarrant, who is accused of killing 51 people in terrorist attacks on two ...

The launch of new political party Coalition NZ came on Thursday following months of speculation. Controversial church leader Hannah Tamaki will lead the party. She said it will not be a Christian Party, but it will be built on strong ...

Press Release – Helicopter industry calls for review of aviation regulatory system The New Zealand Helicopter Association (NZHA), a division of Aviation New Zealand, welcomes the TAIC report into the tragic Fox Glacier accident for the messages it ...

Trees That Count is thrilled to be working with pole-vaulting Olympic medallist Eliza McCartney, who joins the organisation as brand ambassador in May 2019. An environmental science student who loves the outdoors, Eliza makes her first appearance for Trees ...

Alison Mau seems desperate to shut down our petition (“ Family First is trying to scare you - don't fall for it ” SST, 19 May 2019 ) which calls for an Inquiry into a possible link between cannabis and ...

The Aotearoa New Zealand Association of Social Workers (ANZASW) notes the introduction of new intensive services by Oranga Tamariki, Ministry for Children, designed to reduce the number of children / tamariki uplifted into state care. ...

Wellbeing, kindness and compassion have been promoted by our Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern as central to how her government makes policy and determines its budget. But how can a government budget for wellbeing? ...

Generation Zero and School Strike 4 Climate are launching their Elbow Your Elders campaign today to coincide with the strikes happening around the country. Both groups recognise the need for the Zero Carbon Act to be more ambitious and strong ...

Aotearoa New Zealand is spending more than $20 million every year to anaesthetise children so they can undergo multiple tooth extractions as a consequence of consuming sugary drinks. This is one of the reasons that University of Auckland academic Dr ...

Welcoming today’s announcement of a change in New Zealand’s debt from 20% to a band of between 15-and-25% of GDP, Barnett said it is a step forward. It could allow the injection of $15b or more into the NZ economy ...

Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) has signed up a number of major partners for the Vote 2019 campaign to lift nationwide voter turnout in local elections and increase the public’s engagement with their local council. Although local election turnout ...

The Palestine Solidarity Network has written to Minister of Defence Ron Mark asking him to urgently cancel a reported New Zealand Defence Force multi-million-dollar purchase of military equipment from an Israeli company. ...

The Heart Foundation welcomes this week’s announcement by the Associate Minister of Health Jenny Salesa that the Government’s Wellbeing Budget will include $12 million to reduce the incidence of rheumatic fever amongst Maori and Pacific people. ...

When the Government presents its first Wellbeing Budget next week, it will be looking beyond traditional measures, such as GDP, to define New Zealand’s success. This is also at the core of the Shared Prosperity Index launched by Massey University ...

"The announcement by the Minister of Finance that the Government was moving from a rigid 20% debt target to a range between 15% and 25% is welcome," CTU Economist Bill Rosenberg says. "At a time when interest rates are low ...

In a world where the human impact on the environment is becoming more and more apparent every day, it’s refreshing to hear of break-through companies that are having a positive impact. Ethical clothing company , Little Yellow Bird has, in ...

The success of Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s inaugural state visit and Hon. David Parker in April to Beijing has been the impetus for a multi-sector China Trade Mission confirmed for 9-11 September 2019. The China Chamber of Commerce in New ...

The Independent Police Conduct Authority has found that a Police officer should not have tried to stop or pursue a car thought to contain young people in Palmerston North on 28 May 2018. The pursuit ended when the fleeing car ...

Bill Rosenberg, Economist and Policy Director for the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions (CTU) and Lyndon Keene, Director of Policy and Research, for the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists (ASMS) have conducted a detailed analysis of what ...

Yes, 'n' how many deaths will it take till he knows That too many people have died? The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind The answer is blowin’ in the wind From Blowin’ in the wind. Bob Dylan ...

Landlords have just over one month to ensure their rental properties meet the 2016 insulation requirements or face exemplary damages of up to $4,000, and Tenancy Compliance and Investigations says there will be no room for extensions. ...

The PSA and E tū bargaining team are hopeful for an improved offer from Access Community Health as they resume mediation today, following a week of nationwide strike actions by Access coordinators, administration, and call centre workers. ...

Business and parliament need to step up to stronger integrity systems says TINZ roadmap It is beyond time for serious and urgent action to protect and extend integrity in New Zealand The National Integrity System Assessment 2018 update (NIS 2018) ...

Child Poverty Action Group is pleased to see the Government set ambitious 10-year targets for child poverty reduction , but we are disappointed not to see a target set for improving thousands of young lives where the worst of poverty ...

The Aotearoa New Zealand Association of Social Workers (ANZASW) strongly welcomes the government’s pledge to increase funding to tackle family and sexual violence. The government estimates that around a million people including 300,000 children ...

The Government has recently released mandatory planning standards for councils to meet. The new standards address the structure and form of plans, as well as setting national definitions and requiring plans to be accessible and interactive online ...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Holly Cullen, Adjunct professor, University of Western Australia Australians woke to the news on Friday that the United States had unveiled new charges against Wikileaks co-founder Julian Assange. The indictment, issued by ...

By Megan Darby of Climate Home News It has been a big week for democracy, starting with a pro-coal verdict in Australia and ending with Europeans going to the polls. Environmentalists despaired as Australian Labor lost another battle in ...

What’s happened to the Government’s promised liberalising reform of abortion laws? An announcement of new legislation is looming, but there are signs that reform might be less liberal than pro-choice campaigners were wanting or expecting. The concept of a “woman’s ...

RNZ’s Guyon Espiner investigates New Zealand’s central drug buyer Pharmac – how it works and whether its model is costing lives. In part one, he reveals how lung cancer patients are buying cut-price drugs from India, as other New Zealanders fundraise, ...

OPEN LETTER:By Gary Juffa, Governor of Oro Dear Prime Minister, You sold all our todays and were about to sell our children’s tomorrows too. You were in the most enviable and powerful position to do what is right ...

After a decade feeling alienated from sport, Hannah Spyksma returned to the netball courts and found it just as good as when she left.It’s winter sport time and this year I’ve decided to break an almost 14-year drought. A Saturday ...

Yesterday, Destiny Church rebranded their political arm as The Coalition Party, and Tim Batt bought their domains before anybody else could. He writes on the value of online trolling as political protest.Yesterday Destiny rebranded their political arm as The Coalition ...

In this bonus edition of Gone By Lunchtime, the prime minister talks to Toby Manhire at the Auckland Writers FestivalLast weekend at the Auckland Writers Festival, Jacinda Ardern spoke with Spinoff editor Toby Manhire about the extraordinary election campaign of ...

This year’s International Comedy Festival was a roaring success, but some comedians have turned the spotlight on audiences. Are they too timid? Do our hecklers suck? Josie Adams sizes things up.When Netflix star James Acaster closed his last show of ...

New Zealand’s binge drinking culture is notoriously bad, but could change be on the horizon for this little country of boozers?Booze, booze, everywhere, but what does it mean to drink? Alcohol consumption around the world is awash with stereotypes. In ...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The government’s tax relief package is shaping up as the first test of incoming opposition leader Anthony Albanese, with Treasurer Josh Frydenberg declaring on Friday ...

The United Resources Party, led by Hagen Open MP William Duma, including four ministers, switches to the opposition. Video: EMTV NewsPacific Media Centre Newsdesk The biggest coalition partner in Prime Minister Peter O’Neill’s coalition government has defected to ...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ben Wellings, Senior Lecturer in Politics and International Relations, Monash University Like Avengers: Endgame we all knew it was coming but weren’t quite sure exactly how it would play out. Theresa May, ...

Analysis - In a week that featured chaos and confusion after assertions a rapist was working at Parliament, there was also cooperation on climate, a big Budget announcement and a new political party. ...

The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in reality television and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s.It’s Jane’s second to last podcast in New Zealand and we have pulled out all the stops: a fire hazard, a cheesy bread ...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonti Horner, Professor (Astrophysics), University of Southern Queensland Over the past few days a pair of spectacular fireballs have graced Australia’s skies. The first, in the early hours of Monday, May 20, ...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra [embedded content]University of Canberra Deputy Vice-Chancellor Geoff Crisp speaks with Michelle Grattan about the week in politics. They discuss the Coalition’s shock victory and the ...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Collins, PhD candidate , University of New England In 2002, I went on a bushwalk with plant taxonomist David Albrecht, and had a big surprise. He pointed to a plant I ...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Hemer, Senior Research Scientist, Oceans and Atmosphere, CSIRO Curious Kids is a series for children. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskids@theconversation.edu.au You ...

Mum was right: heavy exposure to pocket monsters fundamentally rewires your brain. But researchers from Stanford say it’s an exciting opportunity to study how we learn to see.There’s an old folk myth that when James Cook and the Endeavour sailed ...

By RNZ Pacific New Zealand foreign minister Winston Peters says his government is “asking for explanations” about alleged mismanagement at the regional University of the South Pacific. New Zealand is the 12-country USP’s second largest funder behind Australia, contributing ...

The only published and available bestselling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Toll by Luke Wright (Penned in the Margins, ...

Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.Today’s contentNew parties: Coalition New Zealand Party launched, Alfred ...

A well-preserved fruitcake that sat in an Antarctic hut for over a century has gone on display at Canterbury Museum. Here, a fan of ancient foodstuffs pens an open letter to the controllers of the cake. Please, Antarctic Heritage Trust, I ...

New verse from Sydney-based poet Catherine Vidler.The weirdness of treesI love the weirdness of trees, but that’s not an opinion. In my opinion, shapes take the shape of things other than my opinion but inseparably from my opinion about the ...

The US banned Huawei and now Google is breaking up with the Chinese smartphone maker. How did all go so wrong?I’ve been hiding under a rock for the last few days. What happened? Earlier this week, Google announced plans to ...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Wright, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Science, Western Sydney University This week Melbourne’s water storage dropped below 50%, a sign of the prolonged and deepening drought gripping eastern Australia. Sydney is only ...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brendon Hyndman, Senior Lecturer and Course Director (Postgraduate Education courses), Charles Sturt University You may have heard of play. It’s that thing children do – the diverse range of unstructured, spontaneous activities ...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ben Egliston, PhD candidate in Media and Communications, University of Sydney Some of the world’s most popular video games track your activity as you play – but they’re not just gathering data ...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Joannah Luetjens, PhD Candidate, Utrecht University In the lead up to the recent federal election, there was plenty of negative rhetoric about current policy settings. Piecing together the various messages, it seems ...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert G. Patman, Professor of International Relations, University of Otago In February, a terrorist attack by Jaysh e-Mohammad (JeM) killed more than 40 Indian military personnel in the Indian state of Jammu ...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Moore, PhD Candidate, Melbourne School of Design, Monash University Private enterprise has shaped the skylines of Australia’s cities, and the names of their highest towers reflect this. The towers of Sydney ...

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Cameron Allen, Researcher, UNSW Are we letting too many or too few migrants into Australia? For 2019-20 the Australian government has cut the annual net migrant intake from 190,000 to 160,000. It’s ...